“Moral leadership of progressive religious communities is sorely need right now. As we care for another, we will find our way forward to a post-pandemic world that is more just. We can only navigate this unprecedented time together.” – Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray
Here is a new press release from the UUA President – Practicing Now for a more just Post-Pandemic Society
At the UU Fellowship, Morgantown on November 9, at 6:30 p.m. Free. This movie has been well received, receiving praise from the Washington Post (some of their words below). The movie was nominated for an Oscar.
“Slavery technically ended over 150 years ago. But Ava DuVernay wants you to take another look at the amendment that abolished it. Her documentary “13th” is a powerful look at how the modern-day prison labor system links to slavery. The film offers a timely and emotional message framed by the election and the Black Lives Matter movement.
“13th” received a standing ovation at the New York Film Festival, where it became the first documentary to open the prestigious festival. The title refers to the 13th amendment, which formally abolished slavery. But DuVernay zeroes in on the amendment’s exception clause, which states that slavery and involuntary servitude are illegal “except as a punishment for crime.”
“Indeed our survival and liberation depend upon our recognition of the truth when it is spoken and lived by the people. If we cannot recognize the truth, then it cannot liberate us from untruth. To know the truth is to appropriate it, for it is not mainly reflection and theory. Truth is divine action entering our lives and creating the human action of liberation.”
― James H. Cone
This Sunday we will explore the connection between liberation theology and the Unitarian Universalist Association.
We would love to have you come worship with us.
Our services are Sundays at 11 a.m. at the Progressive Women’s Association Event Center, 305 Washington Ave. in downtown Clarksburg, behind the Courthouse.
Our Religious Education/ Life Long Learning Class will meet at from 10am to 10:45 am with a coffee gathering before the service. More about us.
Children are welcome. There is childcare and an activity for young children during the service.
The building is wheelchair accessible, with an accessible restroom.
The schedule for the current adult religious education class is here.
Email westforkuu@gmail.com or use our contact form for more information
or write to us at PO Box 523, Clarksburg WV 26302
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Namaste
Cricket
Image Credit – http://www.slideshare.net/chaoxine/liberation-theology-34109525
http://callandresponse.blogs.uua.org/a-white-privilege-wake-up-call/
There is a question embedded in this article.
“How can racism possibly be dismantled until white people, lots and lots of white people, understand it as an unfair system, get in touch with the subtle stories and stereotypes that play in their heads, and see themselves not as good or bad but as players in the system?”
This was a big discussion in one of my classes last semester at seminary. We have to see the privilege and then work towards equality.
Namaste,
Cricket
“The Black Lives Matter movement is the leading struggle for racial justice of our times. It is a movement led by Black people who are women, queer, youth, working class, including Black UUs around the country. It is a movement to end institutional racism and to respect the inherent worth and dignity of all people. It is a movement for collective liberation.”
This article by Chris Crass is about why the Black Lives Matter movement is so important to UUs. It also has some great ideas on how to support the movement towards the end of the article.
Namaste,
Cricket
http://www.raceconscious.org/2016/01/1066/
Katie Nachman will soon graduate with a Master’s Degree in Social Work from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her focus is in clinical mental health and program development. She is a mother to three children, ages 9, 7, and 4. She and her family identify as White Americans of European descent.
Namaste,
Cricket
http://www.uua.org/ga/past/1966/ware
In 1966, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave the Ware Lecture at the UUA General Assembly. Here is a quote from the beginning of the speech, “The great question is, what do we do when we find ourselves in such a period? Certainly the church has a great responsibility because when the church is true to its nature, it stands as a moral guardian of the community and of society. It has always been the role of the church to broaden horizons, to challenge the status quo, and to question and break mores if necessary. I’m sure that we all agree that the church has a major role to play in this period of social change.”
We are still working. We are still fighting. We need to still be living our principles and working toward a vision of the world where all people are treated equally.
Namaste,
Cricket
UU World editor Chris Walton writes in his Fall Column: “The General Assembly passed a resolution calling on UU congregations to support the Black Lives Matter movement, which is challenging police brutality and other expressions of white supremacy. The movement challenges us, too.”
~Namaste
Cricket
Being an ally is more than being a friend. Being an ally means standing up. Being an ally means a lot of things to a lot of people.
In this article from the UUA, presenter Tim Wise talks about how to be an ally and the road map to racial equality.
This article from Everyday Feminism, Jamie Utt describes things that an ally can do along with the idea that being an ally isn’t a self-proclaimed identity.
#standingonthesideoflove #blacklivesmatter
~Namaste
Cricket
West Fork Unitarian Universalists 